Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO – Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 76,515 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,827 shares during the quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Altria Group were worth $3,087,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Altria Group by 39.9% in the 3rd quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 27,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,147,000 after buying an additional 7,785 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 4.3% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 34,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439 shares during the period. Girard Partners LTD. grew its stake in Altria Group by 1.9% in the third quarter. Girard Partners LTD. now owns 14,224 shares of the company’s stock worth $598,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd increased its holdings in Altria Group by 1,094.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 851,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,796,000 after purchasing an additional 780,000 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor OS LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 16.0% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 6,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.41% of the company’s stock. Altria Group Stock Performance MO stock opened at $46.08 on Monday. Altria Group, Inc. has a one year low of $39.06 and a one year high of $46.34. The firm has a market cap of $79.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.76. Altria Group (NYSE:MO – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15. Altria Group had a net margin of 34.81% and a negative return on equity of 222.80%. The company had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. Altria Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Altria Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued. Altria Group Dividend Announcement The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.51%. Altria Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.01%. Insider Activity at Altria Group In other Altria Group news, VP Charles N. Whitaker sold 22,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total value of $988,303.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 173,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,624,665.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MO shares. UBS Group increased their price target on Altria Group from $36.10 to $36.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Altria Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.90. Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MO Altria Group Profile (Free Report) Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand. 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Cigarette sales continue to drop. The company still generates plenty of free cash to pay dividends.
Realty Income is one of the largest real estate investment trusts you can invest in. Combustible tobacco sales are sinking for Altria Group, but it could transition heaps of customers to its new e-vapor products.
Altria's main product is cigarettes, a business line that has seen severe volume declines. Altria's historically high dividend yield is alluring, but Hormel Foods is also offering a historically high yield.
The share price of Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO), the tobacco company, has risen 14% this year to about $46.
Altria's ~14% stock price rise YTD is supported by multiple factors like a high dividend yield, increased share buybacks and upgraded earnings outlook. These override any impact the otherwise weak Q1 2024 results might have had, especially as the adjusted earnings were impacted by shrinking revenues. Even though MO's P/E has inched up this year, price gains are still possible, or at the very least, a price decline is unlikely and its dividend yield is robust.
Zacks.com users have recently been watching Altria (MO) quite a bit. Thus, it is worth knowing the facts that could determine the stock's prospects.